This article covers the diplomatic relationship between India and New Zealand: the establishment of relations, New Zealand's India policy papers, visits and meetings at the level of heads of state and government, ministerial and parliamentary exchanges, and the dialogue mechanisms between the two governments. It is based on the MEA brief of July 2026.
Establishment of relations and shared features
Diplomatic relations between India and New Zealand were established in 1952. The brief describes the two countries as sharing "warm and friendly ties". It lists similarities such as membership of the Commonwealth, common law practices, and shared aspirations of achieving economic development and prosperity through democratic governance systems for diverse communities, and it credits tourism and sporting links with a significant role in building goodwill.
New Zealand's India policy papers
According to the MEA brief of July 2026, New Zealand identified India as a priority country in its "Opening Doors to India" policy, notified in October 2011 and reiterated in 2015. In 2011, New Zealand also launched the NZ Inc. India Strategy, which aimed to make India a core trade, economic and political partner for New Zealand.
On the eve of the visit of New Zealand's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister to India from 25-28 February 2020, New Zealand released the Strategy Paper "India-NZ 2025 - Investing in the Relationship". The brief states that it builds on earlier policy papers and envisions a more "enduring strategic relationship" with India over the following five years.
Prime Minister Modi's visit to Auckland, July 2026
Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid an official visit to Auckland from 10-11 July 2026. The brief describes it as the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to New Zealand in the last 40 years. On 11 July he met Prime Minister Christopher Luxon at Government House in Auckland, and the two leaders agreed to elevate the bilateral relationship to the level of Strategic Partnership.
Various Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) and arrangements were signed during the visit, in the fields of:
- defense and maritime security
- hydrography
- sports
- disaster management
- dairy
- tourism
- maritime heritage
- culture
- food technology
- ocean research
The two leaders also adopted a Joint Statement on the way forward for the bilateral partnership. Prime Minister Modi attended a Gala luncheon hosted by the Prime Minister of New Zealand, themed "India-New Zealand: A Winning Partnership", which was attended by personalities from politics, business, industry, academia, technology, sports and the arts.
Prime Minister Luxon's visit to India, March 2025
Prime Minister Luxon paid an official visit to India from 16-20 March 2025, his first in his present capacity. He was the Chief Guest of the 10th Raisina Dialogue and delivered the Keynote Address. He held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, called on President Smt. Droupadi Murmu on 17 March 2025, and met External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar and Minister of Health and Family Welfare Shri J.P. Nadda. In Mumbai he met Governor C.P. Radhakrishnan and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of Maharashtra.
During the visit, the leaders announced the launch of negotiations towards a balanced and mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement in a time-bound manner. The agreements signed included:
- MOU on Defense Cooperation
- Authorized Economic Operator - Mutual Recognition Agreement
- MoC on Horticulture
- Letter of Intent on Forestry
- Education Cooperation Agreement
- MoC in Sports
Other leader-level contacts
President Smt. Droupadi Murmu undertook a State Visit to New Zealand from 7 to 9 August 2024. She met Governor General Cindy Kiro, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters, and discussed strengthening cooperation in trade, culture, sports, defence and traditional medicine. A Customs Cooperative Agreement was signed during the visit.
Prime Minister Modi and Prime Minister Luxon met on 11 October 2024 in Laos, on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit, and discussed economic cooperation, tourism, education and innovation. They had earlier spoken by telephone in July 2024, when Prime Minister Luxon congratulated Prime Minister Modi on his party's victory in the general elections and his third term. On 22 May 2023, Prime Minister Modi met New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins on the sidelines of the FIPIC-III Summit in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, where they discussed issues including parliamentary exchanges, education, culture, sports and people to people ties.
Ministerial meetings
External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar met Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters in New Delhi on 29 May 2025, during Mr Peters' official visit to India. They had also met on 06 November 2024 during 'Raisina Down Under' in Canberra, where discussions focused on India's priorities in the Indo-Pacific and opportunities for greater collaboration. The External Affairs Minister met Prime Minister Luxon on the sidelines of the 20th ASEAN East Asia Summit in Kuala Lumpur on 27 October 2025.
Parliamentary exchanges
- Lok Sabha Speaker Mrs. Sumitra Mahajan led a Parliamentary delegation to New Zealand on 17-25 September 2016. Besides meeting Speaker David Carter and New Zealand Parliamentarians, she met Acting Prime Minister Bill English.
- A multi-party Parliamentary Goodwill delegation led by Shri Rajiv Pratap Rudy, then Minister of State (Independent Charge) for the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Parliamentary Affairs, visited New Zealand from 1-3 June 2015.
- A four-member delegation from the New Zealand Parliament's South and South-East Asia Parliamentary Friendship Group, comprising Greg O'Connor of the Labour Party and Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi, Tim Mcindoe and Melissa Lee of the National Party, visited New Delhi and Mumbai from 20-26 November 2019. It called on the MoS for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs Shri V. Muraleedharan, the Deputy Chairperson of Rajya Sabha, the Chairperson of the Standing Committee on External Affairs and the Chief Election Commissioner.
Dialogue mechanisms
The 6th India-NZ Foreign Ministry Consultations (FMC) took place in New Delhi on 09 September 2025. The discussions were led by Secretary (South) Dr. Neena Malhotra and, from the New Zealand side, by Mr. Grahame Morton, Deputy Secretary South and South East Asia Division, MFTA.
The 7th round of the track 1.5 Dialogue between the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA) and the Asia New Zealand Foundation (ANZF) was held in Christchurch from January 30-31, 2025.